A hype free curated Movie and Music Review blog from the Websnacker and Crew. Plus Irreverent Commentary, Slice of Life Vignettes and Random Incisive Thoughts on Culture, Travel, Design, Marketing, Activism, Environment, Men, Women and Everything else in between. Besides every now and then, a healthy dose of sparkling Music and awesome hard to find Movies - for FREE!

Hear Now

Manifesto Existenso

Social Provocateur, Blogger, World Traveler, Cinephile, Music Collector, Marketeer, Photog / Lensman, Web Bandit, Anti Capitalist, Ghost Writer, Tastemaker, Misread Critic, Bootlegger, Design Geek, Green Activist, Futurist, OpenSourcer, Optimist, WebDJ and Curator of this Blog - at the Crossroads of Life! And an avid collector of Cinema and Music - have a personal collection of 15000+ Movies, 50000+ music tracks and much more. Send a request and it will be granted! Read More..

Legal Mumbo Jumbo

All the content - Music, Movies, Reviews, Articles and other stuff here are for your personal reading, hearing and viewing only. It has been gathered from around the world and is honestly meant to promote the original artists/creators so please don’t trip out. The Websnacker Blog simply acts as a tastemaker - a broadcaster letting you discover great content, hear fresh music and see amazing movies usually not covered by the mainstream media - an eclectic experience to see the world in a different perspective. However, in other words, if you happen to be one of the fancy pants that owns the copyright to stuff that you see here and don't agree with this act of goodwill, let me know and I will gladly remove the links as fast as you can say a Hip Hop, Be Bop, Don't Stop. Chill! Still waiting for an Alien Invasion!!!

Copy Wrong

Unless explicitly indicated, all content here has been either authored, co-authored, produced, directed, composed, mixed or ghost written by the blog authors. Every effort has also been made to credit (and trace) the original copyright holders and if you're one among them, our most sincere apologies for the omission. Believe the Websnacker, its all in good faith so simply write in and it'll be set right in a presto. And to explain these totally impure actions, lets also quote Wilson Mizner and Stravinsky - "If you steal from one author, it's plagiarism; if you steal from many, its research!", "A good composer does not imitate, he steals". Peace!

Monday, April 15, 2013

1995's Judge Dredd was savaged by critics when it was released. A critical failure, many die hard Dredd comic fans (on which it was based) hated its tongue and cheek humor and general silliness. I did not hate it and rather found its campiness quite endearing. Besides, you don't often get to see Sylvester Stallone don an over the top role and still have genuine fun.

By comparison, Dredd of 2012 is, to my understanding a more faithful adaptation of the comic book and a solid sci-fi actioner in its own right. Set in a dystopian future of huge urban scrawls, abject poverty, crime and colossal sepia-toned skyscraper towns, Dredd has a more' real' feel to it that adds to its advantage.

The film starts in Mega City, a endlessly sprawling metropolis of concrete, neon and people. Massive skyscrapers that can house thousands of poor residents jut out of the ground like pillars from a distance. Most of the city shots are real shots of Johannesburg, South Africa that were digitally altered to create the monstrous urban structures but its done superbly.

As expected, Mega-City is a crime ridden dung heap ruled over by the menacing Ma-Ma (Lena Headey), a vicious psychopath and drug queen who also controls the black market on a new best selling, time-shifting mind drug, Slo-Mo. So, its upto the lawful Judges, by the book administrators of the law (played very well by Karl Urban andOlivia Thirlby) to take her down and keep civil order as best they can.

As an emotionless judge, jury and executioner all in one, Karl Urban in the lead role here is truly magnetic. You never get to see his face yet, he brings plenty of depth to the character. Olivia Thirlby as his young rookie with a conscience adds a certain girlish innocence to the script when the movie starts but is a mature pass-out by the time all the bloodbath subsides and the movie ends.

Pete Travis, who gave us Vantage Point and End Game directs with kinetic flair and the result is aviscerally raw, gritty and intense movie experience. The action scenes alone warrant a viewing and at just 95 minutes, its timed just right. A poor marketing strategy to position this as a 3D movie was the root cause for its market failure. Let it not deter you from watching what is actually a stunningly well made action entertainer. JohnnyTwoToes

1 comment:

Thank You to the editors of Websnacker. My original review was VERY LONG for Dredd but thankfully, it has been trimmed down to spare the reader my ramblings. But, I still stand by what is posted. Dredd is a phenomenal film, one of the best of 2012, and it hardly received even a glimmer of recognition from just about anybody. Watch it, buy it and look into the score by Paul Leonard-Morgan. Four stars on all counts.

Think of this blog as an alternative to your regular mainstream entertainment source. For most bloggers, writers and journalists after the blood, sweat and tears all they have is a paycheck at the end of the day but here, we have something better, our passion. Read on and you'll agree why this blog is different! And remember to like the Websnacker on Facebook and follow on Twitter!